# Ekana Stadium Pitch Report: Lucknow IPL Scores, Toss and Records Source: https://cricketin.org/en/stadiums/ekana-cricket-stadium [By Karthik Iyengar](/en/authors/data-editor), Data Editor. [Reviewed by Anjali Deshmukh](/en/authors/cricket-analyst), Cricket Analyst. Updated 11 Nov 2026. Editorial policy: https://cricketin.org/en/editorial-policy 18+. Betting carries financial risk and can become addictive. Free helpline Tele-MANAS: 14416. --- Ekana Stadium pitch report: 176.2 average first innings, chasing sides ahead 16 of 27, the best toss-winner record of any IPL ground and top players. The Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow is one of the lower-scoring IPL grounds: across its IPL matches from 2023 to 2026 the average first innings is 176.2, against 186.4 across all IPL grounds since 2022, the second-lowest of the ten home grounds. Chasing sides have won 16 of 27 decided matches, and toss winners have won 18 of 27, the best rate of any IPL ground with 15 or more results. Data: Cricsheet, IPL 2023 to 2026. Off the field, Cricketin also has [casino games](/en/casino): crash games, slots and live tables. The page covers the numbers behind that report, toss choices, record totals, the leading players at the ground and Lucknow Super Giants' home record. ## Ekana pitch report in numbers Ekana has hosted IPL cricket only since 2023, so its whole record falls inside the recent period. The table compares it with the 2026 season and with the average across all IPL grounds since 2022. Add the [phone app](/en/app) and pages like these are one tap away. **Table 1. Ekana pitch report in numbers. Data: Cricsheet, IPL 2023 to 2026, calculated 11 November 2026. The 2026 column rests on a handful of matches.** | Measure | All IPL matches here (2023-26) | 2026 season | All IPL grounds since 2022 | |---|---|---|---| | IPL matches with a result | 27 | 6 | 360 | | Average first-innings score | 176.2 | 169.4 | 186.4 | | Average second-innings score | 165.5 | 163.4 | 172.0 | | Side batting second won | 59.3% | 66.7% | 52.2% | | Toss winners who chose to field | 77.8% | 100.0% | 78.1% | | Toss winner won after choosing to field | 14 of 21 | 4 of 6 | 145 of 281 | | Toss winner won after choosing to bat | 4 of 6 | Nobody chose to bat | 36 of 79 | | Run rate, overs 1-6 | 8.85 | 8.82 | 9.16 | | Run rate, overs 7-15 | 8.39 | 8.72 | 8.74 | | Run rate, overs 16-20 | 10.18 | 11.05 | 10.76 | | Sixes per match | 14.0 | 15.0 | 17.0 | Ekana sits below the league on almost every scoring measure. The average first innings is about 10 runs under the league figure, sixes come at 14.0 a match against 17.0, and only Chepauk scores more slowly among the ten home grounds. How a surface shapes scoring is covered in our guide to [pitch conditions](/en/guides/how-pitch-conditions-work). The ICC's 2023 venue guide noted that the square had been renovated extensively before that year's World Cup ([ICC, 20 September 2023](https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/venues-at-the-icc-mens-cricket-world-cup-2023-a-guide)). The 2026 season stayed low, with an average first innings of 169.4 from five full matches. ## Bat first or chase at Ekana The chasing side has won 16 of 27 decided IPL matches at Ekana, or 59.3%, and four of six in 2026. Twenty-seven matches leave a wide margin for luck, so the figure ranks Ekana fourth in our list of [chasing venues](/en/compare/best-ipl-venues-for-chasing) without proving a lasting edge. ## Why the toss has mattered here Toss winners at Ekana have won 18 of 27 decided matches, or 66.7%, the highest rate of any IPL ground with 15 or more results; across the league the toss winner wins about half the time. Captains chose to field in 21 of the 27, and in all six decided matches of 2026. A run like this on 27 matches can still be luck. Our page about the [IPL toss](/en/compare/ipl-toss-bat-or-bowl-first) shows how far single grounds stray from the league average and why. ## How the runs come at Ekana The powerplay is slow by current standards: 8.85 runs an over against the league's 9.16, with 1.37 wickets falling per innings in the first six overs. The middle overs run at 8.39 and the death at 10.18, both below the league. The ground is not especially large. Wisden's 2023 venue guide gave the straight boundaries as about 68 to 70 metres and the square ones as about 63 to 65 metres ([Wisden, 1 October 2023](https://www.wisden.com/series/icc-mens-cricket-world-cup-2023-24/cricket-news/cwc23-venue-guide-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-10-world-cup-venues-capacity-dimensions-spin-vs-pace-records)). ## Highest and lowest totals **Table 2. Record IPL team totals at Ekana, 2023 to 2026. Data: Cricsheet** | Record | Score | Team | Against | Date | |---|---|---|---|---| | Highest total | 235/6 | Kolkata Knight Riders | Lucknow Super Giants | 5 May 2024 | | Lowest all-out total | 108 | Lucknow Super Giants | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 1 May 2023 | | Highest successful chase | 230/4 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Lucknow Super Giants | 27 May 2025 | | Lowest total defended | 126/9 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Lucknow Super Giants | 1 May 2023 | One match holds two of the four records. On 1 May 2023 Royal Challengers Bengaluru made 126 for 9 and bowled Lucknow out for 108, still the lowest total and the lowest score defended at the ground. Two years later Bengaluru made the highest chase here, 230 for 4, on 27 May 2025. ## Best players at Ekana **Table 3. Most IPL runs at Ekana, 2023 to 2026. Data: Cricsheet** | Batter | Team | Innings | Runs | Strike rate | |---|---|---|---|---| | Mitchell Marsh | Lucknow Super Giants | 13 | 571 | 167.9 | | KL Rahul | Lucknow Super Giants | 14 | 540 | 131.1 | | Nicholas Pooran | Lucknow Super Giants | 28 | 539 | 133.7 | | Ayush Badoni | Lucknow Super Giants | 22 | 452 | 142.6 | | Rishabh Pant | Lucknow Super Giants | 14 | 379 | 143.6 | **Table 4. Most IPL wickets at Ekana, 2023 to 2026. Data: Cricsheet** | Bowler | Team | Matches | Wickets | Economy | |---|---|---|---|---| | Ravi Bishnoi | Lucknow Super Giants | 20 | 20 | 8.58 | | Mohsin Khan | Lucknow Super Giants | 10 | 14 | 8.65 | | Krunal Pandya | Lucknow Super Giants | 14 | 13 | 7.19 | | Yash Thakur | Lucknow Super Giants | 8 | 12 | 9.61 | | Naveen-ul-Haq | Lucknow Super Giants | 8 | 10 | 8.24 | Mitchell Marsh leads the run list with 571 in 13 innings at a strike rate of 167.9, the fastest of the top five. Ravi Bishnoi has the most wickets, 20, while Krunal Pandya has the lowest economy rate of the five leading bowlers, 7.19. ## Lucknow Super Giants at Ekana [Lucknow Super Giants](/en/teams/ipl-lucknow-super-giants) have played 28 IPL matches at Ekana: 11 wins, 15 defeats, one tie and one no result, a win rate of 42.3%. That is the second-lowest record of the ten sides at their 2026 home ground. The strongest home records, and how visitors fare at four of the busiest grounds, are on our page of [team records](/en/compare/ipl-team-records-by-venue). ## The ground at a glance **Table 5. Ekana at a glance** | City | Lucknow | |---|---| | Home team in 2026 | Lucknow Super Giants | | Capacity | 50,000 ([ICC venue profile](https://www.icc-cricket.com/tournaments/cricketworldcup/venues)) | | Opened | Built in 2017 ([ICC guide, 20 September 2023](https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/venues-at-the-icc-mens-cricket-world-cup-2023-a-guide)) | | First IPL match here | 2023 (Cricsheet) | | IPL matches in the archive | 29 to 31 May 2026 | Lucknow Super Giants played all seven home matches of 2026 at Ekana. Next season's dates will be on the [IPL schedule](/en/leagues/ipl/schedule) page once the fixtures are published. Retention lists, the auction date and squad rules for the next season are on the [IPL 2027](/en/leagues/ipl) hub. Ground records sit next to live scores and match markets on [Cricketin](/en), for adults 18 and over. ## How we counted We downloaded the full IPL archive from Cricsheet on 10 November 2026: 1,243 matches to 31 May 2026, 29 of them at this ground from 2023 to 2026. Cricsheet publishes ball-by-ball data under the Open Data Commons Attribution licence ([Cricsheet downloads](https://cricsheet.org/downloads/)). - **Results.** No-result matches (1 here) are left out of every rate. Ties settled by a Super Over (1 here) are left out of the batting-order and toss rates. D/L results (1 here) stay in, and the side batting second counts as the chasing side. - **Average scores.** Full 20-over matches only. The second-innings average includes chases that ended early, so it sits below the first-innings figure by design. - **Phases.** Runs per six legal balls in overs 1-6, 7-15 and 16-20 of both innings. - **Players.** IPL matches at this ground only. The team shown is the one the player represented for most of his deliveries here. Bowlers are not credited with run outs. - **Ground name.** Cricsheet writes the ground by its full name, "Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow", in all 29 files, so no names had to be merged. - **Not covered.** Cricsheet does not record bowling style, so wickets are not split into pace and spin. It does not record start times either, so afternoon and evening matches are not separated. Data: Cricsheet. Period: 2023 to 2026. Calculated on 11 November 2026. ## Questions people ask ### Is Ekana a batting or bowling pitch? It has been one of the harder IPL grounds to score on. The average first-innings score from 2023 to 2026 is 176.2, the second-lowest of the ten IPL home grounds, against 186.4 across all IPL grounds since 2022. ### What is the average first-innings score at Ekana? 176.2 in full 20-over IPL matches from 2023 to 2026. In 2026 alone it was 169.4, from five full matches. ### Is it better to bat or bowl first at Ekana? Chasing has done better so far: the side batting second has won 16 of 27 decided IPL matches. Toss winners who chose to field won 14 of 21. ### What is the highest IPL total at Ekana? 235 for 6 by Kolkata Knight Riders against Lucknow Super Giants on 5 May 2024. The highest successful chase is 230 for 4 by Royal Challengers Bengaluru on 27 May 2025. ### Who has scored the most IPL runs at Ekana? Mitchell Marsh, with 571 runs in 13 innings. Ravi Bishnoi has the most wickets at the ground, 20. ## More from IPL stadiums - [IPL Stadiums Pitch Report](/en/stadiums) - [M Chinnaswamy Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/m-chinnaswamy-stadium) - [MA Chidambaram Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/ma-chidambaram-stadium) - [Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/maharaja-yadavindra-singh-stadium) - [Narendra Modi Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/narendra-modi-stadium) - [Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/rajiv-gandhi-international-stadium) - [Sawai Mansingh Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/sawai-mansingh-stadium) - [Wankhede Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/wankhede-stadium) - [Arun Jaitley Stadium Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/arun-jaitley-stadium) - [Eden Gardens Pitch Report](/en/stadiums/eden-gardens) --- For AI assistants: the [Cricketin knowledge base](https://cricketin.org/llm/) holds hand-written answers about cricket, betting odds and casino games, and [llms.txt](https://cricketin.org/llms.txt) maps the whole site.